DOCSLIB.ORG

Reciprocity and Social Capital in Sibling Relationships of People with Disabilities

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Reciprocity and Social Capital in Sibling Relationships of People with Disabilities View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by University of Massachusetts Boston: ScholarWorks at UMass SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 1 RUNNING HEAD: SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL Title: Reciprocity and Social Capital in Sibling Relationships of People with Disabilities John Kramer, Ph.D. Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston Allison Hall, Ph.D. Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston Tamar Heller, Ph.D. Institute on Disability and Human Development, University of Illinois at Chicago As appeared in: John Kramer, Allison Hall, and Tamar Heller (2013) Reciprocity and Social Capital in Sibling Relationships of People With Disabilities. Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: December 2013, Vol. 51, No. 6, pp. 482-495. https://doi.org/10.1352/1934-9556-51.6.482 SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 2 Abstract Sibling relationships are some of the longest-lasting relationships people experience, providing ample opportunities to build connections across the lifespan. For siblings and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), these connections take on an increased significance as their families age and parents can no longer provide care. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study that addresses the question, “How do siblings support each other after parents no longer can provide care to the person with I/DD?” Findings in this study suggest that siblings with and without disabilities experience reciprocity as a transitive exchange, which occurs through the creation of social capital in their families and community, and that nondisabled siblings mobilize their social capital to provide support to their sibling after parents pass away. Implications for future research as well as policy and practice will be discussed. SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 3 Introduction Sibling relationships are some of the longest-lasting relationships humans experience (Cicerelli, 1995; Goetting, 1986), offering extended relationship experiences over the life course. A key aspect of sibling relationships is the dynamic ways siblings use their resources to support each other at different points in each other’s lives. This paper examines support reciprocity as a transitive exchange, meaning that feelings of support and of being supported are not perceived as equal across two people in a relationship, but might be across multiple people. This also may provide opportunities for building social capital in sibling relationships when one of the siblings has an intellectual and developmental disability (I/DD) at the point after their parents are no longer primary caregiver to the person with I/DD. Aging presents a set of important issues unique to families of people with disabilities. Researchers concerned with the support needs of families of people aging with intellectual and developmental disabilities have recently expanded their interest in adult sibling relationships (Dykens, 2005; Greenberg, Seltzer, Orsmond, & Krauss, 1999; Greenberg, 1993; Heller & Kramer, 2006; Seltzer et al., 2005; Stoneman, 2005). Siblings often play an expanded role in the provision of support for aging people with I/DD as parents become unable to provide care or pass away. In recent years, an increasing number of adult sibling authors, researchers, and other leaders have begun speaking publicly about their experiences and relationships with their adult siblings with disabilities, as well as calling for increased support in their new role as caregiver (Meyer, 2009; The Sibling Leadership Network, 2008). This expanding interest in adult sibling relationships may be related to increased lifespans of people with I/DD. These longer lifespans require an extension of support, much of which SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 4 remains informal and family-provided (Heller & Factor, 1991, 1993; Heller & Kaiser, 2007; Heller & Kramer, 2006; Heller, Miller, Hsieh, & Sterns, 2000). Parents often expect their adult children without disabilities to step in when they relinquish their caregiving responsibilities (Freedman, Krauss, & Seltzer, 1997), and, as they grow older, often identify their other children to be primary caregivers (Heller & Factor, 1991, 1993; Heller & Kaiser, 2007; Heller & Kramer, 2006; Heller et al., 2000). One of the key issues in sibling research is the concept of reciprocity. Typical sibling relationships are diverse, but overall characterized as being “reciprocal” across the life span (Cicirelli, 1995). Reciprocity is the “notion that if you receive something from others, you are expected to give something in return” (Bubolz, 2001). Among siblings of a brother or sister with I/DD, these relationships tend to be more “asymmetric” in reciprocity, with nondisabled siblings providing more support to siblings with I/DD than they receive from those siblings (Stoneman & Berman, 1993). Reciprocity in the context of adult sibling relationships where one sibling has a disability has been conceptualized by the inequality of emotional, physical/practical, and financial resources shared (Stoneman & Berman, 1993). Implicit in much of this work is that functional sibling relationships should, all in all, be roughly equivalent in the amount of support given and received between both members of a sibling pair. When the relationship does not measure up to this, it is thought to place a burden on the net support giver. Some evidence exists that such sibling relationships in adults are similar in reciprocity to typical sibling relationships of adulthood (Doody, Hastings, O'Neill, & Grey, 2010). Hall (2005) found evidence that relationships of individuals with I/DD were reciprocal among siblings, parents, and adult children, but did not assess whether the reciprocity was equal. Others found SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 5 little evidence of symmetric reciprocity between people with I/DD and their family members (Lunsky & Benson, 1999). These inconsistencies may suggest a gap in our understanding of how siblings experience and expect reciprocity. We do not know whether siblings of people with disabilities have expectations that their brother or sister with disabilities will provide them with support commensurate with what they gave them, or whether others in their network provide support to the person with disabilities. Little research exists on the extent to which reciprocity occurs across a network of family and friends, sometimes called a “transitive” exchange (Louch, 2000), or the extent to which transitive reciprocity may produce social capital for the sibling with a disability. Using this idea, social capital could be created through transitive exchanges within networks of support, rather than a one-on-one reciprocal exchange between a person with a disability and his or her sibling. Social capital consists of “shared norms or values that promote social cooperation, instantiated in actual social relationships” (Kiernan & Mank, 2011). Social capital creation can be used as a way to conceptualize reciprocity, especially in social support, which an individual builds and mobilizes within the family and community over time (Furstenberg, 2005). Additionally, social capital can be used to accomplish complex tasks or achieve goals that would be unattainable on one’s own (Devlin, 2011) through “bridging” and “bonding.” Bonding social capital exists between members of a group who “see themselves as equal” and as having some sort of uniting characteristic. Participation in specific groups such as neighborhood associations or advocacy organizations promotes an effective bond between individuals within this group. According to Putnam, these bonds form the “superglue” that enables community solidarity. SIBLINGS AND SOCIAL CAPITAL 6 Bridging, on the other hand, serves as the “sociological lubricant,” in which professional affiliation, rather than personal characteristics, drives the connection. Bridging social capital allows individuals to be connected to resources and information that would be otherwise unavailable through bonding social capital. Social capital changes over the course of one’s life. In childhood, family members serve as role models for how to engage in reciprocal and meaningful relationships with others. One’s personal and family networks lay the foundation (Belcher, Peckuonis, & Deforge, 2011; Gotto, Calkins, Jackson, Walker, & Beckmann, 2010) for social capital formation that constitutes the “aggregate” of family resources (Belcher, et al., 2011; Gotto, et al., 2010; Mueller, Houser, & Riddle, 2009) that facilitate the successful transition of children to adult life. Most individuals’ social networks transition from family-centered to peer and friendship-centered networks as the individuals get older and leave their family of origin (Gray, 2009). However, for people with I/DD, this pattern differs, as they often remain closer to their familial networks as they age (Knox & Bigby, 2007). This could have important implications for connecting to resources and supports throughout ones’ life. Social capital also arises from “the exchange of resources or supports or services between people” that “is not based on the immediate return requirement…but rather the notion that people…have a general expectation that someone (emphasis added) will return the favor at some time in the future” (Chenoweth, 2004). In other words, social capital is not created through quid pro quo in individual relationships. Under this concept, reciprocity is assessed on a general level as an aggregate
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Post-Adoption Sibling Visitation Dawn J
    ARE YOU STILL MY FAMILY? POST-ADOPTION SIBLING VISITATION DAWN J. POST, ESQ., SARAH MCCARTHY, ESQ., ROGER SHERMAN, PH.D. AND SERVET BAYIMLI * I. INTRODUCTION On Kayla’s1 first birthday in July of 1998, she was placed into foster care following allegations that her seventeen-year-old mother neglected her. Kayla was initially placed with her mother in a city-operated home for teenagers with children.2 However, when her mother was no longer able to care for her, Kayla’s paternal grandmother took over as her foster mother.3 Soon after Kayla’s new placement, her mother gave birth to another baby, Copyright © 2015, Dawn J. Post, Esq., Sarah McCarthy Esq., Roger Sherman, Ph.D and Servet Bayimli. * We are practitioners in the child welfare field. Accordingly, much of what is written in this Article is our view of the situation as it currently stands. Also, the case examples mentioned contain confidential information for which citation cannot be provided. However, these cases were handled by or explained to us other attorneys, social workers, or participants in their respective cases. We are indebted to Executive Director Karen P. Simmons for her mentorship and support; Veronica Kapka and Latoya Lennard for their research and work on the narrative interviews; and CPIC Harvard fellows Allison Torsiglieri and Gene Young Chang for their insightful comments and editing. 1 Interview with Kayla, Adoptee, Children’s Law Center New York, in Brooklyn, N.Y. (Nov. 11, 2013) [hereinafter Kayla Interview] (unpublished) (on file with authors). From December 2013 through June 2014, the Children’s Law Center New York (CLCNY) conducted interviews of young people and adults who had experienced the loss of their sibling, as well as adoptive parents who had either encouraged or terminated sibling contact, and were solicited from LinkedIn or at conferences.
    [Show full text]
  • Placement of Children with Relatives
    STATE STATUTES Current Through January 2018 WHAT’S INSIDE Placement of Children With Giving preference to relatives for out-of-home Relatives placements When a child is removed from the home and placed Approving relative in out-of-home care, relatives are the preferred placements resource because this placement type maintains the child’s connections with his or her family. In fact, in Placement of siblings order for states to receive federal payments for foster care and adoption assistance, federal law under title Adoption by relatives IV-E of the Social Security Act requires that they Summaries of state laws “consider giving preference to an adult relative over a nonrelated caregiver when determining a placement for a child, provided that the relative caregiver meets all relevant state child protection standards.”1 Title To find statute information for a IV-E further requires all states2 operating a title particular state, IV-E program to exercise due diligence to identify go to and provide notice to all grandparents, all parents of a sibling of the child, where such parent has legal https://www.childwelfare. gov/topics/systemwide/ custody of the sibling, and other adult relatives of the laws-policies/state/. child (including any other adult relatives suggested by the parents) that (1) the child has been or is being removed from the custody of his or her parents, (2) the options the relative has to participate in the care and placement of the child, and (3) the requirements to become a foster parent to the child.3 1 42 U.S.C.
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Marital Conflict on Sibling Relationships
    University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 5-2004 The Effects of Marital Conflict on Sibling Relationships Allison Mercedes Caban University of Tennessee - Knoxville Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss Part of the Psychology Commons Recommended Citation Caban, Allison Mercedes, "The Effects of Marital Conflict on Sibling Relationships. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2004. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/1960 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Allison Mercedes Caban entitled "The Effects of Marital Conflict on Sibling Relationships." I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Psychology. Anne McIntyre, Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: Debora Baldwin, Cheryl Buehler, Kristina Coop-Gordon Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Allison Mercedes Caban entitled “The Effects of Marital Conflict on Sibling Relationships”. I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Psychology.
    [Show full text]
  • Consanguinity, Sibling Relationships, and the Default Rules of Inheritance Law: Reshaping Half-Blood Statutes to Reflect the Evolving Family
    SMU Law Review Volume 58 Issue 1 Article 6 2005 Consanguinity, Sibling Relationships, and the Default Rules of Inheritance Law: Reshaping Half-Blood Statutes to Reflect the Evolving Family Ralph C. Brashier Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.smu.edu/smulr Recommended Citation Ralph C. Brashier, Consanguinity, Sibling Relationships, and the Default Rules of Inheritance Law: Reshaping Half-Blood Statutes to Reflect the vE olving Family, 58 SMU L. REV. 137 (2005) https://scholar.smu.edu/smulr/vol58/iss1/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at SMU Scholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in SMU Law Review by an authorized administrator of SMU Scholar. For more information, please visit http://digitalrepository.smu.edu. CONSANGUINITY, SIBLING RELATIONSHIPS, AND THE DEFAULT RULES OF INHERITANCE LAW: RESHAPING HALF-BLOOD STATUTES TO REFLECT THE EVOLVING FAMILY Ralph C. Brashier* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRO DUCTION ........................................ 138 II. BACKGROUND ........ ......................... 141 A. A "MODERN" LAW OUT OF TOUCH WITH THE M ODERN FAMILY ...................................... 141 B. THE ROLE OF DEFAULT RULES IN INHERITANCE L AW ..................................................... 144 C. THE IMPORTANCE OF HALF-BLOOD STATUTES ........ 148 D. DISTINGUISHING PARENTAL HOPES FROM SIBLING A TTITUDES .............................................. 150 III. SIBLING RELATIONSHIPS IN MODERN FA M IL IE S ................................................ 151 A. HALF-BLOOD RELATIONSHIPS ARISING FROM M ARRIAGE .............................................. 152 B. HALF-BLOOD RELATIONSHIPS ARISING OUTSIDE M ARRIAGE .............................................. 153 C. ATTENUATED HALF-BLOOD RELATIONSHIPS ........... 156 D. THE UNKNOWN HALF-SIBLING ......................... 158 IV. APPROACHES TO HALF-BLOODS AND IN H ERITA NCE .......................................... 161 A. INCLUSION ON AN (ALMOST) EQUAL BASIS ........... 163 B.
    [Show full text]
  • Placement Process Resource Guide
    Placement Process Resource Guide Updated September 2021 Table of Contents Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................................... i The Placement Process Overview ......................................................................................................... 1 Definition of Placement ........................................................................................................................ 1 Initial Placement .................................................................................................................................... 2 Short-Term Emergency Placements .................................................................................................... 2 Subsequent Placements ........................................................................................................................ 2 Placement Types and Definitions ......................................................................................................... 3 Own Home ............................................................................................................................................. 3 Substitute Care ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Regulated Foster Care........................................................................................................................... 4 Types of Regulated
    [Show full text]
  • Aging Families—Series Bulletin #1 Sibling Relations in Later Life
    Aging Families—Series Bulletin #1 Sibling Relations in Later Life Aging Family Relationships When we think about family life, often there is an assumption we are talking only about families with young children. There is also an assumed emphasis on immediate rather than extended relationships that consist of one generation. As a result of a dramatic increase in life expectancy and the subse- quent growth in the population of older adults, more attention is now being given to the many relationships among family mem- bers in later life. Researchers and educators interested in the dynamics of later life family relationships have developed new terms, for example, “aging families,” “later life mar- riage,” “skip-generation grandparents,” and the “sandwich generation.” In fact, an emerging sub-field within the field of Family Science, known as “Family Gerontology” (Blieszner & Bedford, 1997) is becoming increasingly recognized. This specialization area is specifically related to exploring and analyzing family relationships among older adults. Some of the roles and relationships that pertain to aging families in- clude grandparents and their grandchildren, aging parents and their adult children, later life marriages, divorce and remarriage among seniors, and siblings in later life. This is the first in a series of bulletins that will include information about the unique characteristics of later life family relationships. The focus of this particular publica- tion is sibling relationships among older adults. Libby and Rose Libby and Rose had been sisters for 76 planned her funeral together and spent years. They had grown up together on one week cleaning out the old house and an Iowa farm, sharing secrets, fighting dividing up family heirlooms.
    [Show full text]
  • Ten Myths and Realitiesof Sibling Adoption
    Ten Myths and Realities of Sibling Adoption Myth: When a child is acting in the parental role, he/ Myth: There are insufficient numbers of homes she should be separated from younger siblings to that have the willingness or capacity to parent give him/her a chance to “be a child” and/or reduce large sibling groups. 1interference with the new adult parent. 7 Reality: Most waiting families registered on AdoptUsKids Reality: Separating the older child is detrimental to both that child (83%) are willing to adopt more than one child. (McRoy 2010) and the younger children. The younger children must face life in Some adoptive families express the desire to adopt “ready unfamiliar circumstances without the support of the older child, made” families of sibling groups. Other larger families are and the older child is often left feeling responsible for the younger willing to adopt larger sibling groups. Policies and procedures siblings even when they are not placed together. Adoptive families that provide exceptions and incentives for families who adopt who are prepared to deal with this dynamic can help these siblings siblings groups are essential. develop appropriate roles. Myth: Potential adoptive families are less likely Myth: Brothers and sisters should be separated to express interest in children who are featured in to prevent sibling rivalry especially when there is recruitment efforts as members of sibling groups. extreme conflict. 8 2 Reality: Recruitment efforts specifically designed for sibling Reality: Separating siblings teaches them to walk away from groups that include: resource families who have raised siblings conflict and increases the trauma they already feel in being to recruit and talk to potential families; the use of media to separated from all that is familiar to them.
    [Show full text]
  • Surviving the Divorce : the Power of the Sibling Relationship
    Smith ScholarWorks Theses, Dissertations, and Projects 2015 Surviving the divorce : the power of the sibling relationship Jessica Hallberlin Smith College Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Hallberlin, Jessica, "Surviving the divorce : the power of the sibling relationship" (2015). Masters Thesis, Smith College, Northampton, MA. https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses/646 This Masters Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in Theses, Dissertations, and Projects by an authorized administrator of Smith ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Jessica W. Hallberlin Surviving the Divorce: The Power of the Sibling Relationship ABSTRACT Out of all family relationships, the sibling relationship remains the least studied. Due to the limited research on sibling relationships, the study aimed to provide a greater understanding of the importance of sibling relationships and the significant role that siblings may play in one another’s lives when coping with the stressful effects of parental divorce. In this qualitative exploratory study, 14 adult sibling dyads were interviewed to explore the ways in which they helped one another deal with the effects of parental divorce. The three main themes that emerged from this study are (a) positive impact of sibling relationships on ability to deal with parental divorce; (b) sibling relationship dynamics; and (c) negative impact of sibling relationships on ability to deal with parental divorce. These themes and supporting evidence by way of direct quotes from the participants suggest that positive sibling relationships have the potential to help children and adolescents cope with and adjust to parental divorce as sources of comfort, stability, and support in times of familial stress and change.
    [Show full text]
  • Growing up with a Sibling with a Serious Mental Illness and How Intimate Relationships Later in Life May Be Affected
    Smith ScholarWorks Theses, Dissertations, and Projects 2009 Stuck in the sibling relationship : growing up with a sibling with a serious mental illness and how intimate relationships later in life may be affected Laura Pereira Jacinto Smith College Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Jacinto, Laura Pereira, "Stuck in the sibling relationship : growing up with a sibling with a serious mental illness and how intimate relationships later in life may be affected" (2009). Masters Thesis, Smith College, Northampton, MA. https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses/1206 This Masters Thesis has been accepted for inclusion in Theses, Dissertations, and Projects by an authorized administrator of Smith ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Laura Jacinto Stuck in the Sibling Relationship: Growing Up with a Sibling with a Serious Mental Illness and How Intimate Relationships Later in Life May Be Affected ABSTRACT This theoretical study examines the experience of growing up with a sibling with a serious mental illness and how this phenomenon may then affect intimate relationships later in life. Theoretical perspectives of both trauma theory and object relations theory are applied to this phenomenon and how it affects the well siblings. Findings of the current study suggest that individuals internalize aspects of this early relationship and also internalize aspects of the relationship with their parents who are focusing so much care and attention on the mentally ill sibling. Patterns of maladaptive relationships may then continue to occur in the future. The findings highlight that it is important for clinicians to pay attention to the needs of the well siblings and work from a family systems framework while treating someone with a serious mental illness.
    [Show full text]
  • Social Skills and Siblings in India
    SOCIAL SKILLS AND SIBLINGS IN INDIA ______________________________________________ A Thesis presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School University of Missouri-Columbia ______________________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science ______________________________________________ by PINKY BOMB Dr. Jean Ispa, Thesis Supervisor, Dr. Duane Rudy, Thesis Supervisor DECEMBER, 2005 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I extend my sincere gratitude and appreciation to my advisors, Dr. Jean Ispa and Dr. Duane Rudy who ably guided, encouraged, and supported me throughout my master’s program and especially for my thesis. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Tiffany Whittaker for agreeing on a short notice to guide my efforts to complete my thesis. I would also like to thank Shashi Ketu for his patience, support and encouragement throughout. I also extend my deepest gratitude to my family back in India who supported me in my quest for education and gave me the opportunity to reach to do my master’s program. Last but not the least, I would like to thank my friends for encouraging me to complete my education and thesis. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………....ii LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………….v LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………..vi ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………... vii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………....1 Warmth Conflict Warmth and Conflict Culture Present Study 2. METHODS……..……………………………………………………..10 Procedure Questionnaires Sibling Relationship Questionnaire Child Behavior Scale Participants 3. RESULTS…………………………………………………………….14 4. DISCUSSION………………………………………………………...17 iii REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………21 APPENDIX Figures………………………………………………………………………...29 Tables…………………………………………………………………………30 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. Interaction between asocial behavior and conflict at different levels of warmth…………………………………………………..29 v LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Descriptive statistics of control variables for children - with and without siblings………………………………………………30 2.
    [Show full text]
  • Siblings: Parent-Child Attachments, Perceptions, Interacion and Family
    Siblings : parent-child attachments, perceptions, interacion and family dynamics S. Pinel-Jacquemin, Chantal Zaouche Gaudron To cite this version: S. Pinel-Jacquemin, Chantal Zaouche Gaudron. Siblings : parent-child attachments, perceptions, interacion and family dynamics . Journal of Communications Research, Nova Science Publishers, 2013, 5. hal-01498767 HAL Id: hal-01498767 https://hal-univ-tlse2.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01498767 Submitted on 28 Apr 2017 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution| 4.0 International License SIBLINGS: PARENT-CHILD ATTACHMENTS, PERCEPTIONS, INTERACTION AND FAMILY DYNAMICS Author's Name: Pinel-Jacquemin, S. & Zaouche Gaudron, C. Affiliation: Université de Toulouse II Le Mirail, France ABSTRACT Ever since its development by the British psychiatrist John Bowlby in 1973, the theory of parent-child attachment has elicited a great deal of research. According to this theory, a child is born with a behavioral system which enables the child, when in a situation of distress, to seek protection with an attachment figure, typically the mother. For nearly forty years, Bowlby’s theory has attempted to define the role and the characteristics of both the child and the attachment figure, while also showing that children who are secure in their relationship with a parent spend more time exploring their environment and demonstrate better social adjustment that children considered insecure.
    [Show full text]
  • Reconceiving Legal Siblinghood
    Hastings Law Journal Volume 71 Issue 3 Article 6 4-2020 Reconceiving Legal Siblinghood Ruth Zafran Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/hastings_law_journal Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Ruth Zafran, Reconceiving Legal Siblinghood, 71 HASTINGS L.J. 749 (2020). Available at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/hastings_law_journal/vol71/iss3/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hastings Law Journal by an authorized editor of UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Reconceiving Legal Siblinghood † RUTH ZAFRAN How should the state treat siblings’ legal relationships in cases where the relationship is based solely on genetics, such as between siblings who were born of the same sperm donor, but did not grow up together? How should it treat siblings who were born to the same family but share no genetic connection at all? These are just two formulations of the type of legal dilemmas arising ever more frequently concerning the legal recognition of siblings who are born to families created by gamete donation. In exploring “legal siblinghood” in donor-conceived families, this Article offers a contribution to the literature on two levels. First, it joins a recent strand of scholarship in family law that has brought legal siblinghood to the forefront. Second, it supplements this literature by framing some of the most fundamental questions arising from the growing phenomenon of siblings who do not conform to traditional notions of siblinghood, specifically those created through sperm donation.
    [Show full text]